5 .( 



^5 Ga3 



II 


1 

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ONE HUNDRED 

YEARS 
IN GREENFIELD 




JONATHAN LEAVITT 

First President of the Franklin Bank 



^ 



<^ ^.L^s '■ ^i ^ T'^uxj^j^ . V -<.aa;' 



ONE HUNDRED YEARS 
IN GREENFIELD 

1S22— 1922 




The Poet's Seat 



Issued to Commemorate 
a Centiiry of Bank in (j 

THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK 

GREENFIELD MASS. 



r7 4- 



Copyright, 1922 

First National Bank 

Greenfield, Mass. 



M^R 131922 



Written, arranged, and printed by direction of the 
Walton Advertising and Printing Co., Boston. 



C1A658545 




grkp:xfield common in 



FOREWORD 

\ow the question arises, were the former times better than 
these. Perhaps it would be expected that one like me, ninety- 
one years of age, would decide in favor of former times, but the 
former times were not better than these. Were I to begin my 
life anew I would say, let me begin now rather than as times 
were a hundred years ago. 

Rev. C. C. Corse still radiating optimism so wrote 
. .i 1894 to the late Francis M. Thompson, who recorded 
the sentences in his excellent History of Greenfield. 
In the same spirit the First National Bank of Green- 
field now looks forward to its next century of service 
while pausing to review the past. In offering these 
pages to its friends, it hopes to stimulate a renewal of 
interest in the picturesque history of this locality, and 
so far as is possible in a small compass, to indicate how 
it happens that Franklin is the most thriving agricul- 
tural county in Massachusetts, and Greenfield the 
fastest growing community in New England. Surely 
lO'^^ is an inspiring moment "to begin life anew" and 
to continue to serve. 




FRANKLIN RIPLEY 

First Cashier of the Franklin Bank 



ONE HUNDRED YEARS IN GREENFIELD 

CHAPTER I 

The Pioneers 

A TRAVELLER from afar visiting Greenfield today 
wonld with difficulty picture the well-established 
town as a frontier settlement facing the constant menace 
of hostile Indians. But, if he would understand Franklin 
County in general and Greenfield in particular, he 
should take the time to delve into the history of their 
early struggles, since environment alone is not suffi- 
cient to explain the character of a community whose 
traditions extend over two himdred and fifty years. 
Deerfield, the oldest of twenty-six towns of Franklin 
County, owes its inception to the activities of the 
Apostle Eliot, who was authorized by the General 
Court in 1651 to lay out at Natick a tract of ^2,000 acres 
for an Indian settlement. As the chosen land en- 
croached upon the lands of Dedham, the ensuing con- 
troversy was settled by the General Court, which 
ordered that Dedham be granted 8,000 acres of land in 
any convenient place then free from grants. Thus it 
came to pass that the men of Dedham heard of an avail- 
able tract of land "about twelve or fourteen miles above 
Hadley" which embraced the Indian town of Pocomp- 
tuck. A visiting committee, after locating and survey- 
ing the tract, returned to the court at the May session, 
and then received its sanction to effect the settlement 
provided they made a town of it, and sliould ''maintain 
the ordinances of Christ there once within five years." 

[7] 



Dedham perfected its title by employing "the wor- 
shipful Colonel Pynchon" of Springfield to buy the 
Indians' title in the 8,000 acres. 

"On the very day that the Sachem of Pocomptuck 
put his (X) mark to the deed conveying all his lands in 
this vicinity to the English forever, the people of Ded- 
ham in town meeting assembled, imposed a tax upon 
these lands for the support of a ('hristian Ministry 
there. Each proprietor's land was to pay annually, for 
this purpose, two shillings for each cow-common (or 
share) that he should keep in his land whether he lived 
there or at Dedham." 

The town was governed from Dedham until May, 
1673, when the General Court passed the order as fol- 
lows: ''In Answer to the petition of the inhabitants of 
Paucomptucke, Samuel Hinsdale, Sampson Frary & c 
the Court judgeth it nieete to allow the petitioners the 
liberty of a toune-ship and doe therefore grant them 
such an addition of land to the eight thousand acres 
formerly granted there to Dedham, as that the whole 
be to the content of seven miles square, provided that 
an able and orthodox minister be within three yeares 
settled among them and that a farnie of two hundred 
and fifty acres l)e layd out for the country's use." This 
grant is nearly identical with the territory now occu- 
pied by the towns of Deerfield, Greenfield and Gill. 

Space will not permit the rehearsal of the many 
events which intervened between the settlement of 
Deerfield and the year 18*^2*2 when the first bank in 
Greenfield was founded. The early struggle of the 
pioneers, their frightful massacre by the French and 
Indians in 1704 when the whole countryside was terror- 



Olcc^>' (^^ e - d :;r< ', /i /( V ./^ K /, 














v-.i/ .,/.--;, 'I 















^ /-', , ,. ^- : /, 



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FIRST RECORDS OF THE FRANKLIN HANK 



ized, are well known. Neither is it possible here to 
record the patriotic spirit of the inhabitants dnring the 
Revolutionary War, and the War of 181 '-2, all of which 
is recounted in Thompson's History of Greenfield, 
Sheldon's History of Deerfield or in the Archives of 
the Pocomptuck Valley Memorial Association at Deer- 
field and the Greenfield Historical Society at its sub- 
stantial home on Church Street. Enough has been 
told to show that the county fathers were deeply reli- 
gious, eminently practical and thoroughly imbued with 
the typical American love for self-government. It was 
in the latter spirit the people of Greenfield, then known 
as "Green River," first petitioned the town of Deer- 
field in 1748, to be "Sett off for a Separate Parish & c 
. . . and it was past in the negative." 
The parent town repeatedly denied such petitions. 
Finally on June 9, 17o8, a bill was passed in the Gen- 
eral Court authorizing the separation. And "one month 
after the date of the act of incorporation the district 
of Greenfield is, after much tribulation and many trials 
duly organized and fully equipped with a board of 
officers, to take its place among the organized Dis- 
tricts of Massachusetts Bay." In 1811 the county of 
Franklin was set off from old Hampshire, and in 18*2'2 
we find Greenfield no longer a pioneer outpost but the 
thriving county seat, with the descendants of the 
founders exhibiting the sterling characters, enterpris- 
ing spirit and patriotic fervor of their fathers in daily 
life and in the historic events of a century which was 
to witness three wars and the introduction of steam 
and electricity with all the industrial progress those 
two dynamic words imply. 

[ 11 ] 







CHAPTER II 
Greenfield in 1822 

"Backward, turn backward, O time, in your flight." 

NE hundred years hence it will be a comparatively 
easy matter for our descendants, aided by the pho- 
nographs and motion pictures, to turn time backward, 
hearing and seeing their ancestors as they ''live and 
move and have their being" in the Greenfield of today. 
Thanks, however, to the excellent records of our local 
historian, it is not difficult for us to visualize the days 
and scenes of 1822 when Greenfield's increasing im- 
portance was signalized by the incorporation of its first 
bank, with Jonathan Leavitt as president and Franklin 
Ripley cashier. 

The view^ of Greenfield Common, reproduced from 
a drawing made in 1838, suggests satisfactorily the 
atmosphere of a century ago. Here in the busiest sec- 
tion of the town, the silence is apparently broken only 
by the rumbling stage-coach and the hoof-l)eats of a 
lone horseman, where today a traffic officer is required 
to safeguard pedestrians and to direct the ceaseless 
streams of automobile tourists from the Mohawk Trail 
and the White Mountains. At the left of the picture, 
marking the end of what was known as "Bank Row," 
appears the first courthouse with its small spire. It 
was occupied by the courts from 1812 to 1848 and has 
been intimately linked with the life of Franklin County. 
i The town was authorized to hold its meetings in the 

I [13 J 




INTERIOR OF HOLLISTER HOUSE, BUILT IN 1796 

building "forever" by paying five hundred dollars 
to the county. The place was also used at different 
times for religious meetings by the Second Congrega- 
tional, Episcopal and Unitarian societies. Finally, it 
was acquired in 1871 by the Gazette and Courier, which 
has been the faithful chronicler of county doings 
since February 1, 179'^. 

Next to the old courthouse is the building first occu- 
pied by the "Franklin Bank," subsequently known as 
the "Greenfield Bank," and at the time of the National 
Bank Legislation in 1864 re-christened the First Na- 
tional Bank. The lot on which it stood was purchased 
from the county in 18'2*2 for $371 with the provision 
"that the said Franklin Bank, their successors and 
assigns shall never use or improve the said land, or any 
building thereon, so as to endanger the courthouse or 

[ 14 1 




ROGER NEWTON HOUSE, BUILT IN 1796 

disturb the courts or offices therein." The bank in 
1850 acquired the hind between this lot and the old 
courthouse for an addition to its building. 

On the right-hand side of the wood cut there appears, 
across from the bank, the old brick building of the 
Second Congregational Church, and on its nether side 
is the house of the Reverend Roger Newton, built in 
1793. When the new courthouse was erected, this was 
moved to its present location at the end of Newton 
Place, and is the oldest dwelling in the town. The last 
house on the left in the picture, now known as the 
Hollister Place, was built in 1796 for William Coleman, 
Greenfield's first lawyer. The site was formerly that of 
the old Edward Allen Fort, and before the advent of 
the railroad its singular charm and beautiful view were 
unimpaired. Ashar Benjamin of Greenfield was the 
architect; and apropos of his book, "The Country 

[ 15 1 



Builder's Assistant," published here in 1797, it has been 
said "to this treatise and its author is due by far the 
greater part of the good colonial architecture in Western 
New England." The house, though unfortunately 
given over to commercial purj^oses, still stands as the 
most striking example of colonial style in town, and 
indeed as one of the most noteworthy examples of 
architecture in the whole of Franklin County. 

If the equestrian in the picture should have continued 
his leisurely course a few rods u\) East INIain Street, his 
attention would certainly have been arrested by the 
dignified mansion of the Honorable Jonathan Leavitt, 
first president of the bank, Judge of the Court of Com- 
mon Pleas of old Hampshire County, and the second 
Judge of the Probate Court of Franklin. The house, 
now fortunately preserved as the Greenfield Public 
Library, is also a moiuunent to the genius of Ashar 
Benjamin and was erected in 179(). It occupies land 
which was once protected by the palisades of the Corse 
Fort. *'To this elegant mansion Jonathan Leavitt 
brought his wife, a daughter of President Stiles of Yale 
College, and for years this home was the center of social 
life of the vicinity. In the western wing the Judge had 
his law office." 

The new house on the left-hand corner of Main and 
High Streets might next have excited our rider's admira- 
tion. Now known as the Potter house, this lieautiful 
and unusual mansion was built by Elijah A. Gould in 
18*27, it is said with $'25,000 which he had drawn 
in a lottery. Henry W. Clapp, fourth President of the 
Greenfield Bank, purchased the place in 1834- and occu- 
pied it until his death. Franklin and Park Streets were 

[ 17 1 



laid through his property, and the beautiful trees on 
the former street were set out with great care by Mr. 
Clapp himself. 

Returning toward the Common, our man on horse- 
back might either have satisfied his wants at the gen- 
eral store of Allen & Root on the corner, now occupied 
by their successors, S. Allen's Sons, or if in need of 
refreshment taken himself to the Mansion House. This 
hostelry has a peculiarly interesting and varied history, 
being, so to speak, a direct descendant of Greenfield's 
first tavern, kept by the celebrated hunter and scout, 
John Corse. A title to the lot was obtained l)y him in 
17^0. The oldest portion of the present Mansion House 
was built by Isaac Newton about 1S^5. 

Again, the traveller might have preferred to patron- 
ize the American House (though it was not so called 
until 184-6). It occupied an ancient tavern site dating 
back to 1791. The building was replaced in 1876 by a 
brick structure, and its name latterly changed to the 
Devens Hotel in honor of General Charles Devens of 
Greenfield. All traces of other contemporary taverns 
having passed away, we would refer the reader who is 
further interested in this subject to Chapter LII of 
Thompson's History. We moderns scarcely realize 
what the taverns meant in those days before the rail- 
roads and the press with its telegraphic tentacles had 
displaced the stage-coaches and the inns as carriers and 
disseminators of news. 

"The (lays are short, the weather cold. 
By tavern fires tales are told; 
Some ask for dram when first come in. 
Others with flip or bounce begin." 

[ 19 1 



Verily those were hospitable times and conducive to 
conviviality. 

If one would like to see a cross-section of the life of 
Greenfield a century ago, let him read the following 
memoranda of Thomas W. Ripley, Sr. (one of the incor- 
porators of the First National Bank) : 

"August •^2*2, 1822. In Greenfield Village there are 
Dwelling Houses 80, Barns and Corn Barns 73, Wood- 
houses 57, Stores for Merchandise 14, Mechanic Shops 
23, Congregational Meeting House 1, Episcopal Church 

1, Court House 1, Jail 1, Schoolhouse 1, Bank 1 — Total 
Buildings "^o'S. Families 85. Men — viz: Farmers 10, 
Traders 9, Mechanics 39, Lawyers 10, Tavern Keepers 

2, Clergymen 2, Physicians 2, Sheriff 1, Jailer 1, La- 
borers 10, No Business 4 — Total Men 90. Boys and 
Young Men under 21, 130. Total Males 220. Females, 
viz; Widows 14, Married Women 08, Single Ladies and 
Girls 182— Total Fenudes 204. Total Inhabitants 484." 




GREENFIELD PUBLIC LIBRAllY 

Formerly the Home of Jonathan Leavitt, built iu 1796 



( 



CHAPTER III 

County and Town Developments 

^ REENFIELD has long recognized that the de- 
f velopment of a community depends largely upon its 
accessibility to the outside world, and the problem of 
public transportation was solved for our ancestors 
either by stage coaches or by navigation on the Con- 
necticut River, canals at South Hadley Falls and 
Turners Falls having been opened as early as 1798 and 
1800 respectively. The canal around Enfield Falls was 
opened in 18*29. The first attempt to supplement the 
flat-bottomed boats, which had to be wearily poled up 
stream, was made in 1826 when a steamer called the 
Barnet stopped at Hartford November 14th in an effort 
to reach Barnet,Vermont. Her arrival at Cheapside was 
witnessed by hundreds of people and a fifteen-gun 
salute was fired from the old Deerfield cannon. The 
Barnet replied with twenty-six guns. She never 
reached her destination, but is said to have arrived 
at Bellows Falls on December 12th after a triumphal 
passage. *'By July 1831 there was regular and certain 
steamboat service between Hartford and Greenfield." 
Among the firms which owned boats none survive 
save the successors of Allen & Root. "Just before the 
advent of the Springfield and Northampton and the 
Northam]3ton and Greenfield railroads, Cheapside was 
a 'Port of entry' of no mean proportions. A large bus- 
iness was transacted, and her two storehouses were 
stocked with all kinds of goods from a cambric needle 
to a barrel of potatoes. But the coming of the cars 

[21 1 



killed Cheapside." It was only after long and persist- 
ent efforts to introduce railroads that this came to pass. 

The many references in the town records to trans- 
portation stand proof of the appreciation that Green- 
field has always had of its importance. In 18'24 three 
stages a week ran to Boston and the fare was reduced 
to $3. February, IS'^G, a large convention was held for 
the purpose of inducing Congress to open the Connect- 
icut River to navigation. In the following year a 
canal between Boston and the West by way of the 
Deerfield and Hoosac rivers was projected at a large 
meeting in North Adams. In April, 18*27, projects 
were again introduced favoring the opening of the 
Connecticut for navigation. Eight years later a great 
railroad meeting was held in Greenfield by citizens of 
Franklin County. In 1842 Alvah Crocker, Esq., of 
Fitchburg delivered an address in the town concerning 
the advantages of building a railroad from Boston 
through Fitchburg to Greenfield. Again, in 1844 at 
another meeting, the construction of a railroad be- 
tween Fitchburg and Brattleboro via Greenfield was 
advocated. Almost simultaneously a road between 
Northampton and Greenfield was suggested. Finalh^ 
we find the Connecticut River Railroad under con- 
struction, and the road opened to traffic on November 
23, 184G. 

During this same period we discover other evidences 
of Greenfield's progress. In 1834 the Franklin Sav- 
ings Institution was incorporated. In 1839 it was re- 
solved that the town build a town hall. A committee 
of five having reported at an adjourned meeting their 
inability to agree upon a site, Mr. Henry W. Clapp 

[ 23 1 



(fourth President of the Greenfield Bank) proposed in 
writino' to present his lot of land on Federal Street and 
to liuikl the house himself for "the una])propriated 
balance of the surplus money now belonoino- to the 
town." Tlie offer was accepted and the hall completed 
in time for the town meeting of March '^2, 1840. Al^out 
1845 among the new residences that were erected 
should be mentioned the Bird house at the east end of 
Main Street, now the property of Judge Fessenden, 
the senior justice of the Superior Court of Massachu- 
setts, and formerly an attorney for the First National 
Bank. Among miscellaneous activities of the time 
might be mentioned the following: 

The Greenfield Aqueduct Company in 1846 pur- 
chased a large spring and started to conduct water to 
the town through three-inch pine log pipes. A new 
fire-engine was purchased for $1,000. The Episcopal 
Society laid the corner-stone for St. James' Church in 
1847. The town showed its appreciation of respon- 
sibility toward the health of its inhabitants by voting 
in 1848 to have them vaccinated at public expense. 
In 1849 the Franklin County Bank was organized and 
purchased the old courthouse. The Franklin County 
Agricultural Society was also founded at this time. 

The following year further efforts were made to im- 
prove steam transportation, and the town held meet- 
ings to sustain its representative in his efforts to 
promote the Troy and Greenfield Railroad. 

By way of diversion we find the inhabitants flocking 
to Lyceums where they had the privilege of listening 
to Emerson, George W. Curtis, Wendell Phillips, 
Henry Ward Beecher, and other noted men. Thackeray 



%D 



gave a lecture in Washington Hall during his tour of 
America. Mary P. Wells Smith in her reminiscences 
sums up the intellectual aspect of Greenfield by saying, 
"The tone of the town, or the times, perhaps, somehow 
tended to make ambitious young people feel that the 
thing to do was to know, to read the best books, to keep 
up so far as possible w^ith the highest thought of the 
tune. 

The literary tastes of the residents were evidenced 
in March, 1855, by the establishment of the Green- 
field Library Association. In 1856 work was begun 
on a new town hall, while the Greenfield Bank built 
between their bank and the old courthouse a new build- 
ing. Considerable private construction had also been 
in progress. In 1854 it was voted to name the new 
town hall "W^ashington Hall" and to fit up the old 
one for the use of militia and firemen. Seven hundred 
dollars was also raised to establish a high school. 

The Civil War clouds were now fast gathering and 
the patriotism of the town responded promptly. On 
April 29, 1801, it was ''Voted that Theodore Leonard, 
William Keith, and Henry B. Clapp be a committee to 
disburse such sums as shall be in their judgment nec- 
essary for an outfit for the Greenfield Guards and for 
the comfort of their families during their absence." 
This w\as but the first of many similar appropriations. 
"At a meeting in February 1861 the Greenfield Guards 
Company "G" 10th Regiment M. V. M. unanimously 
voted to hold themselves in readiness to march for the 
defence of the Union whenever their services should be 
required." 

Intense excitement followed on Sunday, April 14, 

[-27] 



1861, when the news was received that Fort Sumter 
had been attacked. "America" was sung in all the 
churches, and in every pulpit prayers were offered for 
the preservation of the Union. It was not until the 
14th of June that the Greenfield boys were ordered to 
entrain and left amid the heartfelt farewells of the citi- 
zens. It is not difficult to visualize the picture while 
the recollections of the World War are still so vivid. 
Only in numbers and in dress would the scenes have 
differed from the recent days when Greenfield's patriot- 
ism once more responded to the nation's call. "When 
Duty whispers low, Thou must, the youth replies, I 
can." 

The monument to the Civil War veterans was dedi- 
cated October 6, 1870. The Honorable W. B. Wash- 
burn, President of the First National Bank, presided. 

"We consecrate for distant years, 
No idle rite — our hearts deep stirred — " 

wrote the odist for the occasion, F. G. Tuckerman, 
Esq. The monument bears the following inscription: 

"Greenfield erects this monument in 
grateful honor to her patriotic sons 
who offered their lives in suppressing 
the Great Rebellion and for the preser- 
vation of the National Union 1861-5." 

The year 1864 saw the beginning of an important 
industrial development in the erection of the dam at 
Turners Falls under the direction of George W. Potter 
of Greenfield, Alvah Crocker, Esq., of Fitch})urg, being 
the main jjromoter of this enterprise. The National 
Bank Act was passed in this year, and the Greenfield 

[28 1 






y 




GOVERNOR WILLIAM B. \\ASHBURN 

Sixth President of the First National Bank 



Bank surrendered its charter to be succeeded by the 
First National Bank of Greenfield with a capitaliza- 
tion of two hundred thousand dollars. In 1869 the 
Greenfield Savings Bank was incorporated. Six years 
later the first regular passenger train came through the 
Hoosac Tunnel, thus opening an important gateway to 
the West. In 1866 the act of incorporation of the 
Greenfield Water Works was accepted. On June 3, 
1879, the directors of the Greenfield Library Associa- 
tion held their first meeting in the new library building, 
which was a gift from the late Governor Washburn. 
Two years, one month later the Greenfield Free Public 
Library was opened with three hundred volumes. The 
town report for 19*20 credits the library with almost 
forty thousand volumes and with 4,787 borrowers' 
cards in force. 

The year 1887 marks the opening of what might be 
called the "electrical era" through the organization of 
the Greenfield Electric Light and Power Company, and 
was the forerunner of the later hydro-electric power 
developments for which this section is noted. 

A reflection of Greenfield's growth at this period is 
seen in the organization of the Greenfield Club in 1891 
with Joseph W. Stevens (eighth President of the First 
National Bank) as its chief executive. It leased the 
entire building of the Franklin County National Bank 
(now the Franklin County Trust Company) above the 
first floor and started with forty-eight members. In 
19*20 it acquired its present house on East Main Street 
and now has a membership of about two hundred and 
twenty-five. In 1895 the Greenfield and Turners Falls 
Electric Railway began to operate. In the same year 

[31 1 



^^^^SMm..^ 




FRANKLIN COUNTY PUBLIC HOSPITAL 

Built in i;)08 

the Franklin Connty Pnblic Hospital was o})ened at 
the house of the Reverend F. L. Robbins, D.D. The new 
hospital building, of which the town may be justly 
proud, was erected in 1908, and has accoininodations 
for sixty patients. The territory of Greenfield was 
enlarged in 1896 by the annexation of the Cheapside 
district. 

On April 11, 1898, President McKinley sent his mes- 
sage to Congress recommending armed intervention in 
Cuba. The ultimatimi of the Ignited States sustaining 
his views in demanding that Spain retire from the island 
of Cuba, passed the House of Representatives on April 
19th. Then followed the call to arms. The Second 
Massachusetts Infantry, of which Company "L" came 
from Greenfield, at once tendered its services to the 
Government, and on March 8d, amid the farewells of 

[32 1 




THE THREE BRIDGES OVER DEERFIELD RIVER 

Looking toward Greenfield 

fifteen hundred citizens who had gathered early in the 
morning, the Greenfiekl boys entrained to uphold the 
traditions of their fathers. Of the seventy-eight volun- 
teers, one was killed at El Caney, and sixteen died of 
disease contracted in the service. 

The year 1903, being the one hundred and fiftieth 
since the incorporation of the town, was fittingly ob- 
served by the Sesquicentennial Celebration, which will 
long be remembered in the annals of Greenfield. The 
committee in charge provided an elaborate program, 
commencing with a salute of twenty-one guns from 
Poet's Seat at 5 a.m. It is estimated that fully twenty 
thousand people assembled for the festivities, which in- 
cluded a grand parade with historic floats and notable 
exercises at Washington Hall, presided over by Judge 
Franklin G. Fessenden. 

[33 1 



Among the most significant words in his introductory 
remarks were the following: "We still have and intend 
to keep, so long as we can, the town form of govern- 
ment. ... In material ways we have progressed. 
Our facilities for communication and transportation, 
always the subject of deep solicitude, would astonish 
our predecessors. Our industries are somewhat more 
extensive than formerly. Our lands have increased in 
value, personal property is greater in amount. But 
above all, we can say with immense satisfaction, that 
they are well distributed, that wealth has not accum- 
ulated in the hands of a few, and that destitution is 
unknown. 

"x\nd our men and women .^ They have not dete- 
riorated. They are the same enterprising, industrious, 
steady, sturdy toilers in their occupations and profes- 
sions. . . . Whenever the welfare of the nation, com- 
monwealth or town has been threatened, their action 
has been immediate. . . . 

"The schools are still cherished as our most priceless 
possessions. We realize that in the public school if 
anywhere the lessons of useful patriotic life are taught. 
. . . May we not feel a certain degree of satisfaction 
when our educational system is taken as a model by 
other municipalities.^ 

"That we have our shortcomings is doubtless true. 

. . . But I do not think we can find among them any 

want of a spirit of determination for future progress." 

Governor Bates, who was introduced as the first 
si)eaker, j^ointed out that "Greenfield was the 170th 
town historically recognized or incorporated in that 
Commonwealth. . . . You have here 1.354tli part of 

[34 1 



m I 




GREENFIELD'S FIRST POST OFFICE 




^IIE NEW POST OFFICi: BUILT IN 1915 



the population of Massacliiisetts. You have 1.465th 
part of the vahiation of the State. According to your 
vahiation you would rank as No. 56 and according to 
your population you would rank as No. 58 among our 
nuuiicipalities. 

''But," he continued, "Massachusetts does not reckon 
the value of a town that way. It is not in the num- 
ber of the inhabitants nor in the wealth that they have 
amassed, but in the manner in which they have ex- 
hibited the characteristics which Massachusetts makes 
her pride and glory. And in the development and 
the illustration of those characteristics you have been 
foremost in peace and in war." 

Judge Fessenden then introduced Senator Henry 
Cabot Lodge, who reviewed in his characteristic pol- 
ished and scholarly manner the general history of the 
town and its place in the history of the nation, and paid 
the following tribute to Greenfield : 

"As in the earliest days when the (question was 
whether the English freedom should prevail over Bour- 
bon monarchies, so now Greenfield lived the life of the 
time. She sent her men to Boston to join Washington's 
Army. . . . And from the days of Revolution onwards, 
so it has always been. You have always lived the life 
of your time. You have stood the supreme test. . . . 
When the hour of stress and peril came you have not 
failed. When the life of the nation was at stake, your 
sons went forth and fought for four years to save the 
Union. In the war of five years ago soldiers from this 
town were at the front in Cuba and the last sacrifice of 
young life was offered up at El Caney for your flag and 
country. You have a right to be proud of your record 

[ :?(i 1 



HOLLISTER HOUSE, BUILT IN 1796 

for you have clone your share to the full and no one can 
do more." 

In the calm opening of the twentieth century none 
could anticipate how soon again Greenfield was to 
justify every sentence of the orator through the sacrifice 
of parents and the heroism of her sons. In the World 
War, Greenfield's quota of men and women to the 
army, navy. Red Cross and Y. M. C. A. was 1,4^27, of 
which number thirty-eight were killed and forty-seven 
wounded. Practically 10 per cent, of the total popula- 
tion were in service, and many others were doing other 
useful war work. 



37 




JOSEPH AV. stp:vens 

Ex-President and Chairman of the Board of Directors First National Bank 



N 



CHAPTER IV 

Greenfield of Today 

O MORE significant reflection of Greenfield's 
progressive spirit can be found than in a perusal 
of the annual reports of the Chamber of Commerce, 
which was organized, with Joseph W. Stevens, pres- 
ident, in the fall of 1919, to supersede the old Board 
of Trade. It now boasts over eight lumdred mem- 
bers, and while its principal function has been defined 
as "to get the people to think," it has also been re- 
markably effective in getting them to act. On the 
strength of its recommendations, the Greenfield Hous- 
ing Corporation was formed, and at a meeting of 
manufacturers in January, 1920, stock subscriptions 
amounting to $103,400 were made within twenty 
minutes. Later the amount was greatly increased, and 
the corporation has constructed nearly one hundred 
new houses. Plans for a new high school have also 
been largely influenced by the Chamber, and for this 
purpose an appropriation of $400,000 has been obtained. 
The Chamber has made recommendations in many 
other important matters, such as town planning, the 
erection of an isolation hospital, the provision of a swim- 
ming-pool, etc., which have been favorably acted upon. 
Its influence was also evident in the passage of a bill 
calling for the purchase by the State of the timbered 
land along the Mohawk Trail, which had been threat- 
ened with destruction. Through the efforts of the pub- 
licity committee, a permanent exhibit of Greenfield's 
products has been established at the Weldon Hotel, 

f 39 1 



and when it is realized that the average number of 
visitors at this excellent hostelry during the touring 
season is about ten thousand a month, the value of 
such an exhibit will be better appreciated. The pub- 
lication by the same committee of a booklet descriptive 
of the Mohawk Trail for free distribution, is another 
indication of the alertness of this committee. 

These are a few of the surface indications of the under- 
lying strength of Greenfield and its county, and, while 
space will not permit a detailed statement, in a few 
words we shall attempt a bird's-eye view of Greenfield 
of today. 

^Agriculture — the original industry of the county — 
has continued to flourish in the century gone by. Out 
of a total area of 446,680 acres, about 61 per cent, is 
laid in farms, 91 per cent, of which are operated by the 
owners. In 1920 the value of crops was $5,981,294.00, 
or 11.5 per cent, of the total for the State of Massachu- 
setts. 

Great attention has been paid to improving livestock, 
thanks to the enthusiastic co-operation of the Farm 
Bureau Extension Service. In the value of sheep 
raised the county leads all other counties with a total 
of $52,342. The total value of cattle in 1920 was 
$1,593,034, of which amount the dairy cattle were esti- 
mated to be worth $1,530,034. Particularly significant 
has been the growth of juvenile Farmers' Clubs. They 
now number eighty-one, which meet regularly for study, 
discussion and practice under the guidance of the 
Juvenile Division of the Farm Bureau Extension Ser- 
vice. 

No organization, however, has been of greater value 

[41 1 



than the FrankHn County Agricultural Society in stinui- 
lating farm enterprise since 1849, when its first fair was 
held on Main Street, Greenfield. This "Live Wire" fair 
has become an annual event. The present splendidly 
arranged Fair Grounds are owned by the Society. The 
handsome gateway was a gift from one of its former 
presidents, Frank O. Wells, Esq. Attendance at the 
fairs during the last five years has increased from 
twelve thousand to thirty-five thousand people. 

The strategic location of Greenfield at the junction 
of the Boston and Maine Railroad from Boston to the 
West, and of the New York, New Haven and Hartford 
direct from Montreal to New York, has more than justi- 
fied the activities of the early pioneers of railroading in 
this vicinity. At the big freight yards at East Deer- 
field an average of 1,600 cars a day are handled in 
normal times. Greenfield is also a center for electrical 
traction lines with connections to Montague City, 
Turners Falls, Lake Pleasant, Millers Falls, Deerfield 
and beyond. 

A review of the industrial activities of the county, 
which include the manufacture of paper, textiles, tools, 
machinery and other commodities, must be foregone 
in so condensed a narrative, but a brief memorandum 
of Greenfield similar to that made by Mr. Ripley in 
18*2*^, together with extracts from the census report of 
1920, will be added as a record of present conditions and 
an inspiration to future progress. 

The population of Greenfield is lo,4<6'2. There are 
ten churches and twenty-one schools. The pupils num- 
ber about three thousand and the teachers 107. The 
fire department is motorized, has a chief, two assistants 

[4i2l 



and fifty-seven men. There are one national bank, 
two savings banks, one trust company, and one Co- 
operative Bank. Greenfield parks, exclusive of the 
Fair Grounds, contain about 200 acres. The Greenfield 
Country Club possesses a golf course of unusual charm, 
and its hospitality is freely extended to visitors. In 
addition to the Gazette and Courier, which has previously 
been mentioned, the county is fortunate in having a 
good daily newspaper, the Greenfield Recorder, which was 
started as a weekly journal in January, 1900, and 
changed by the present management into a daily paper 
commencing January 5, 1920. Finally, the county has 
been justly described as the motorists' paradise, and its 
excellent hotel facilities are greatly appreciated by 
tourists bound to or from the White Mountains or 
the Berkshire Hills. 

The commercial growth of Greenfield itself is strik- 
ingly shown in the following table: 

Census Census Per rent. 

1914 1919 increase 

Number of establishiueiits . . 50 53 

Persons engaged 1,9'21 3,387 73.7 

Proprietors and firm members 41 38 

Salaried employees 278 549 97.5 

Wage-earners (average) . . . l,60'-2 2,750 71.7 

Primary horsepower .... 2,544 4,914 93.2 

Capital $4,465,000 $13,933,000 212.0 

Services 1,282,000 3,876,000 202.3 

Salaries 405,000 766,000 89.1 

Wages 877,000 3,110,000 254.2 

Materials 1,422,000 2,840,000 99.7 

Value of products 3,527,000 9,481,000 168.8 

Value added by manufactiu'e 

(value of products less cost of 

materials) 2,105,000 6,641,000 215.5 

[43 1 



BRIEF NOTES ON THE HISTORY AND FUNCTIONS OF 
THE FIRST NATIONAL BANK 

Originally the First National was known as the Franklin Bank. 
The first stockholders' meeting for the election of directors was 
held February 13, 1822. Jonathan Leavitt was moderator of 
the meeting and Franklin Ripley clerk. The directors elected 
were Jonathan Leavitt, Lyman Kendall, Franklin Ripley, Rufus 
Sexton, Thaddeus Coleman. Mr. Coleman declined to serve and 
Mr. Sylvester Allen was chosen in his place. 

At a meeting of these directors held March 7, 1822, Jonathan 
Leavitt was elected President and Franklin Ripley Cashier at a 
salary of $600 per year. 

October 9, Lyman Kendall was elected President. 
November 2, 1830, William Pomeroy was elected President. 
March 29, 1831, the name of the bank was changed to the Green- 
field Bank. 

October 29, 1838, Henry W. Clapp was elected President. 
October 1, 1855, Franklin Ripley was elected President after having 
served thirty-three years as Cashier, and George Ripley was 
chosen Cashier. 

May 25, 1857, Edmund W. Russell was elected Cashier in [)lace of 
George Ripley who resigned. 

October 5, 1858, William B. Washburn was elected President. 
February 24, 1804, the bank voted to change to the national system, 

and became The First National Bank. 
January 8, 1867, William Henry Allen was chosen Vice-President. 
May 3, 1867, George William Ballon was appointed Cashier. 
July 25, 1870, W. I. Jenkins was appointed Cashier. 
October 1, 1874, Joseph W. Stevens was appointed Cashier after 
having served three years as Teller. 

November 22, 1887, Henry F. Nash was elected President in place 
of William B. Washburn, deceased. 

January 8, 1895, Joseph W. Stevens was elected President after 
having served twenty-one years as Cashier, in place of Henry F. 
Nash who resigned. John E. Donovan was appointed Cashier after 
having served in the positions of Clerk, Book-keeper and Teller 
for twelve years. 

January 16, 1913, John E. Donovan was elected Vice-President 
and Harry C. Robinson appointed Cashier. 

February 23, 1915, Albert B. Allen was appointed Cashier in 
place of Mr. Robinson, resigned. 

September 1918, John W. Smead was elected a Vice-President. 
March, 1919, D. Rollin Alvord was appointed Assistant Cashier, 

[U] 




JOHN W. SMEAD 

President First National Bank 



April 1, 1919, a Savings Department was opened. 
September, 1919, D. Rollin Alvord was appointed Cashier. 
June, 19*^1, Joseph W. Stevens, having served the Bank for fifty 
years in the positions of Teller, Cashier and President, was made 
Chairman of the Board of Directors and Mr. John W. Smead was 
elected President. 

In 1871, the employees of the bank consisted of the Cashier, a 
Teller, and a Book-keeper. The next year another clerk was added 
and for several years the entire working force of the bank consisted 
of four persons. As time went on and business grew, the number 
of employees was also increased, until in 1905 there were seven 
employees, and in 1910 there were nine employees. From that 
time the number has steadily been augmented until today there are 
twenty-six employees. During the period of fifty years from 1871 
to 1921 the bank's deposits have increased from $1G5,000 to 
$•2,4-58,333. Its capital has been increased to $300,000, and it has 
a surplus of like amount. 

( OMAIKIHTAL DEPARTMENT 

Checking or commercial accounts of individuals, business houses 
and corporations are carried in this department. 

Notes, drafts, mortgages, bonds and coupons are handled by 
our Collection Department, and proceeds placed to the credit of 
the owner under his instructions. 

Travelers' checks are sold for use when traveling in this country 
or abroad. These checks are self -identifying, and may be cashed 
anywhere. They do away with the worry of loss or theft of money. 

SAM\(,S DElWHT.MEN'l^ 

In this department interest begins the first business day of each 
month and is credited quarterly — January 1st, April 1st, July 1st 
and October 1st. The amount that can be deposited is not limited. 

LOANS AND DISCOlN I- 

Loans are made to customers at the prevailing rate of interest, 
upon approved personal seciu'ity and suitable collateral. 

Notes of individuals, business houses or corporations, given in 
trade, or in the general transactions of business, are, for the con- 
venience of our clients, discounted, and the proceeds of such notes 
are immediately available for use. 

.IK DKPosrr Di'jwirrMKN'i 

Our safe deposit vaults with a capacity of 1,500 boxes provide 
excellent protection for your valuables. Individual boxes may be 
rented at $3 and upward per year. Coupon booths are available 
where one may examine the contents of his box in private. 

[4C)1 



TRT ST DEPARTiSrENT 

The functions of this department are varied and cover a wide 
field. Our Trust Department acts as Executor under Wills, Admin- 
istrator without a Will or with the Will annexed, Trustee under 
Wills and Living Trusts, Agent for the Care of Securities, Assignee 
— Receiver in cases of Financial Embarrassment, Registrar — 
Transfer Agent for Corporation Stock Issues, Trustee under Bond 
Issues. Wills held for safe-keeping without charge. 

Consult our officers upon any matter of trust, or call or write 
for Trust literature. 

INVESTMENT DEPARTMENT 

The Investment Department is maintained primarily as an 
additional feature of service to our clients. Our close associations 
with financial and business affairs in general enable us to give in- 
formation or advice when desiretl regarding !)anking or investment 
matters. 

Stocks and bonds are bought and sold upon proper orders, and 
information given, when obtainable, regarding the holdings of any 
client, with, perhaps, suggestions for a profitable exchange of 
securities. 

FOREIGN EXCHANGE DEPARTMENT 

For the purpose of affording our clients a convenient and safe 
method of transmitting funds abroad we maintain a fully equipped 
Foreign Exchange Department. Payments in any country are 
thus easily effected. 

Officers 

Joseph W. Stevens, Chairman of the Board 

John W. Smead, President 

John E. Donovan, Vice-President 

Clayton R. Bond, Vice-President 

D. RoLLiN Alvord, Cashier 

Directors 

Charles Allen Winthrop T. Noyes 

Joseph W. Ballard Frederick H. Payne 

Eugene B. Blake George K. Pond 

John E. Donovan William M. Pratt 

Charles C. Dyer John W. Smead 

Clifton L. Field Francis J. Snow 

George W. Lawrence Walter N. Snow 

Ambert G. Moody Joseph W. Stevens 

Walter E. Nichols Charles N. Stoddard 

Charles W. Nims Herman L. Wood 

[47 1 



